Vasopressin plays a vital role in the conservation of water by concentrating the urine in the collecting ducts of the kidney. The collecting ducts of the kidney are relatively impermeable to water without the presence of vasopressin at the receptors and therefore, the hypotonic fluid formed after filtering through the glomeruli, passing the proximal convoluted tubule, the loops of Henle, and the distal convoluted tubules, will be excreted as dilute urine. However, during dehydration, volume depletion or blood loss, vasopressin is released from the brain and activates the vasopressin V2 receptors in the collecting ducts of the kidney rendering the ducts very permeable to water; hence water is reabsorbed and a concentrated urine is excreted. Aquaporins (water channel membrane proteins) play a major role in this intricate process (for a review on mammalian aquaporins, see Beitz and Schultz, Current Medicinal Chemistry, 6, 457–467 (1999)). In patients and animals with central or neurogenic diabetes insipidus, the synthesis of vasopressin in the brain is defective and therefore, they produce very little or no vasopressin, but their vasopressin receptors in the kidneys are normal. Because they cannot concentrate the urine, they may produce as much as 10 times the urine volumes of their healthy counterparts and are very sensitive to the action of vasopressin and vasopressin V2 agonists. Vasopressin and desmopressin, (1-desamino-8D-arginine vasopressin) which is a peptide analog of the natural vasopressin, are being used in patients with central diabetes insipidus. Vasopressin V2 agonists are also useful for the treatment of nocturnal enuresis, nocturia, urinary incontinence and temporary delay of urination, whenever desirable.
Vasopressin, through activation of its V1a receptors, exerts vasoconstricting effects so as to raise blood pressure. A vasopressin V1a receptor antagonist will counteract this effect. Vasopressin and vasopressin-like agonists cause release factor VIII and von Willebrand factor from intracellular stores, so they are useful for the treatment of bleeding disorders, such as hemophilia. Vasopressin and vasopressin-like agonists also release tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) into the blood circulation so they are useful in dissolving blood clots such as in patients with myocardial infarction and other thromboembolic disorders (Jackson, “Vasopressin and other agents affecting the renal conservation of water”, in Goodman and Gilman, The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 9th ed., Hadman, Limbird, Molinoff, Ruddon and Gilman Eds., McGraw-Hill, New York, pp. 715–731 (1996); Lethagen, Ann. Hematol. 69, 173–180 (1994); Cash et al., Brit. J. Haematol., 27, 363–364 (1974); David, Regulatory Peptides, 45, 311–317 (1993); Burggraaf et al., Cli. Sci., 86, 497–503 (1994)).
Non-peptidic vasopressin antagonists have recently been disclosed. Albright et al. describe tricyclic azepines as vasopressin antagonists or vasopressin and oxytocin antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,774 (1996), U.S. Pat. No. 5,532,235 (1996), U.S. Pat. No. 5,536,718 (1996), U.S. Pat. No. 5,610,156 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,612,334 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,923 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,654,297 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,686,445 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,635 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,696,112 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,700,796 (1997), U.S. Pat. No. 5,719,278 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,905 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,538 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,540 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,739,128 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,747,487 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,753,648 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,760,031 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,780,471 (1998); tetrahydrobenzodiazepine derivatives as vasopressin antagonists are disclosed in J.P. 0801460-A (1996); Ogawa et al., disclose benzoheterocyclic derivatives as vasopressin and oxytocin antagonists, and as vasopressin agonists in WO 9534540-A; Ogawa et al. disclose benzazepine derivatives with anti-vasopressin activity, oxytocin antagonistic activity and vasopressin agonist activity, useful as vasopressin antagonists, vasopressin agonists and oxytocin antagonists in WO 97/22591 (1997) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,096,736 (2000); and Venkatesan et al., disclose tricyclic benzazepine derivatives as vasopressin and oxytocin antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,521,173 (1996). Ohtake et al. disclose ocular tension lowering agents and phosphoric ester derivatives exhibiting vasopressin V1 receptor antagonism in WO 99/65525 (1999); and Hoekstra et al. disclose tricyclic benzodiazepines useful as vasopressin receptor antagonists for treating conditions involving increased vascular resistance and cardiac insufficiency in WO 00/43398 (2000).
Albright et al., disclose without apparent exemplification, a subset of tricyclic dibenzodiazepines, pyrrolo benzodiazepines and pyrrolo pyridodiazepines part of the present application, as V1 and/or V2 vasopressin receptor antagonists and oxytocin receptor antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,849,735 (1998) and WO 96/22282 A1 (1996), inter alia.
Albright et al., also disclose a subset of tricyclic pyrrolo pyridodiazepines as V1 and/or V2 vasopressin receptor antagonists and oxytocin receptor antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,532,235 (1996).
Albright et al., also teach a subset of tricyclic pyrrolo benzodiazepines and pyrrolo pyridodiazepines as V1 and/or V2 vasopressin receptor antagonists and oxytocin receptor antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,923 (1997) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,540 (1998).
Albright et al., also describe a subset of thienoazepines as V1 and/or V2 vasopressin receptor antagonists and oxytocin receptor antagonists in U.S. Pat. No. 5,654,297 (1997) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,696,112 (1997).